Ghosts of Dromgoole's Rock (Gimghoul Castle) - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

According to popular legend in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, in 1832 at the University of North Carolina there was a student named Peter Dromgoole.  Peter was in love with a girl named Fannie who was a fellow student at the University.  They used to take long walks and spent many hours at a popular place nearby called Piney Point where they would meet off campus.  As the story goes, the two love birds can still be seen at Piney Point more than one hundred and ten years later!

Gimghoul Castle circa 1927

Another man on campus fell for Peter Dromgoole's girl, and a rivalry ensued.  Before long, Fannie's other suitor challenged Peter to a dual even though they were out of fashion and not really a legal way to solve a dispute any more.  The two met at Piney Point, the very place where Peter and Fannie spent so many hours.  Well, it turns out that Peter was not very good at dueling and was mortally wounded.  He fell and lay draped over a large rock and bled to death on the spot.  In a panic after realizing that he just committed a murder, the man who shot him got his friends to help bury him, then moved the large rock over the freshly dug grave to hide the dirt.  All who were present made a pact to keep the secret or they all could be held responsible for allowing the duel to even take place.

Peter Dromgoole was reported missing.  A search was made for Peter, but he was never found.  After time passed and when it seemed that it was hopeless for finding Peter alive, his girlfriend Fannie, in a depressed and deprecated state, passed away grieving for her lover.  Some sixty years after the disappearance of Peter Dromgoole, one of those present at the duel confessed to what happened to Peter that day back in 1832 before passing on himself.

Gimghoul Castle on Piney Point circa 1940

Today, the rock that Peter was buried under can still be found at Piney Point.  They say that Peter Dromgoole's blood can still be seen on the rock and it has inherited the name of Dromgoole's Rock.  Many claim to have seen two shadow figures lingering around the rock.  Some believe that these are the ghosts of Peter and Fannie haunting the place where they spent so much time together and may have spent their last minutes together.

Dromgoole's Rock with Gimghoul Castle in the background

There is now a castle on the site near the rock known as Gimghoul Castle which for a time served as a fraternity house.  It is said that a secret group was formed there called the Gimghoul Society which is similar to a Skull and Bones society that many colleges and universities have on campus. It is thought to be loosely inspired by the tale of Peter Dromgoole.  Today, the Gimghoul Castle is a private residence and is not open to visitors.  There are however, trails nearby that are available for hiking and possibly getting a glimpse of the shadows of what once were Peter Dromgoole and his girl Fannie.

Black Phantom of Anna Maria Island - Bradenton Beach, FL

On the shores of Anna Maria Island along Bradenton Beach, Florida one can find the spectacular views relaxing as many other beach goers have.  However, there is also something else that roams the beaches of Anna Maria.

Bradenton Beach on Anna Maria Island is host to more than just beach goers

In 1923, Henry Curry, resident of nearby Bradenton, built a house along the shore of Bradenton Beach.  It is said that over the years, the house became inhabited by various spirits  who were most likely former residents or had ties to the home in some way.  One of them was a woman who was reported to have drown out at sea when the ship she was sailing on wrecked and sank.  A young boy and his ghostly dog that appears to be a dalmatian have also been spotted in the Curry house. Another ghost said to haunt the beach side home was what appeared to be a captain or a sailor who smoked a pipe and wore clothing that of a seaman.  Another spooky trait of the home was that it always smelled of orange blossom perfume, even from the outside.

The southern tip of haunted Anna Maria Island, Florida

Bradenton Beach, Florida on Anna Maria Island

Eventually, the house was torn down because no one wanted to purchase it.  Condominiums have since taken it's place.  However, the phantoms of the Curry house may still linger in the area.  Shadow people have been seen walking the sandy shores of Brandenton Beach.  There is one spirit in particular that appears in the form of a black shadow with some sort of hat.  This Black Phantom who may be the ghost of the seaman from the Curry house, has been seen by many at various times of the day including broad daylight, moving through the trees and walking across the beach to the waters edge where it just seems to disappear into the sea.

Bradenton Beach, Florida just may be the place to go relax, enjoy the beach, and take in a ghost or two!

So take a stroll on the shores of Bradenton Beach and see if you encounter any spirits from the past!  

Bradenton Beach on Dwellable

The Curse of Bobby Mackey's (aka Hell's Gate) - Wilder, Kentucky

As history goes in 1896 a young woman named Pearl Bryan, a country girl from Greencastle, Indiana, came to the Cincinnati area after sharing some news with her lover Scott Jackson, who she met in Greencastle.  The news she give him is that she was five months pregnant with his child and was hoping he would marry her.  A few days later she was found murdered and decapitated in a field near Ft. Thomas.  The murderers, who it was believed were Scott Jackson and his accomplice Alonzo Walling, were brought to justice.  However, her head was never found.  On the day that they were to be hanged for the crime, Alonzo, claiming that he was not the one who killed Pearl, declared a curse as he stood next to the hangman's noose.  His curse stated that all who set foot on this land and all who were participants in the trial would be tormented by him as he would return from the grave to haunt them.

As it turns out, all participants in the murder trial of Alonzo met an violent, untimely death.  On the he sight of the gallows where Alonzo was put to death a roadhouse was built in the 1920s. Then the turbulent history of the property began. It became a hot bed of mob activity from the Cincinnati area as this was during the prohibition era.  There were rumors of many murders taking place in the establishment but went relatively unknown until later as the mobsters would remove the bodies and deposit them elsewhere.  After prohibition was lifted, the establishment was purchased and turned into a bar called "The Primrose".  Again, the mobsters came into the picture and tried to threaten the owner for a piece of the action.  In a gunfight, one of the gangsters was almost killed and the owner of the bar was charged with attempted murder.  He gave up and sold the bar to the mob.

An artist rendition of "The Primrose"

After being closed for a while, the establishment re-opened again in the 1950's as a casino.  The daughter of the owner who's name was Johanna, fell for one of the singers who performed at the club.  The owner being very unhappy about the relationship, had the singer murdered by the mob.  Angered and distraught over the incident, Johanna made an attempt to poison her father but failed.  She then took her own life or so the story goes.  Her body was found in the basement of the casino and after an investigation it was found that she was 5 months pregnant, just like Peal Bryan when her remains were found.  There was another attempt to open the establishment as a Hard Rock Cafe in the mid 1970's, but that ended when there was a shooting incident at the restaurant and many people were killed.  The cafe closed a short time afterward as no one wanted to go there after the murders.

Country music singer Bobby Mackey purchased the property in 1978 and turned it into a Country-Western club.  This business is thriving today and it remains "Bobby Mackey's Music World". There have been many occurrences of lights turning themselves on and off and shadow figures have been seen behind the bar.  The jukebox will turn itself on and start playing music, even if it is unplugged! Some folks claim to have seen and talked to a young girl in the club, that after being described to others is believed to be the ghost of Johanna.  However, there have been many reports over the years of violent spirits with disembodied voices demanding that those in the establishment should leave.  Some victims claim to have been bounced off of walls or thrown down stairs by an unseen force.

Bobby Mackey's Music World

It is because of this property's torrid past that it has been nicknamed "Hell's Gate". Maybe also because there is a well hidden inside that some believe is a gateway to Hell. A book was written by the title "Hell's Gate, The terror at Bobby Mackey's Music World" by, Douglas Hensley.  Bobby Mackey himself has written and recorded a song based on the ghost of the girl that has been spotted in the club titled "Johanna".

Bobby Mackey

Book published about the Bobby Mackey Music Word hauntings